Climbing Kilimanjaro 4 a Good Cause
Donation protected
On the 25 March, 2015 I received an invitation from my brother-in-law Sunil, titled ‘50th - Climbing Kilimanjaro’. Sunil requested no birthday presents, preferring we donate any funds raised to charity instead. I liked the idea of helping others while at the same time going on an adventure and so I signed up.
That decision seems like yesterday! Time has flown by as our group of nine struggle to get ourselves in shape before the start on September 16th. While Killimanjaro is not a technical climb (more of a trek), it is still at 5,895 metres (19,341 ft) - the highest free standing structure in the world! With day time temperatures at Uhuru peak well below zero (last week it was -5 celcius), we will need to be well prepared and have been told to expect -20 to -30 Celsius in the early hours of the morning en route to the summit!!
Climbing Kilimanjaro will be a real challenge for me. I am racing against the clock to lose weight to take pressure off my knees.
In the final two weeks before we set off to Arusha, Tanzania on September 15th I am reaching out to all my family and friends to raise money for ‘The Little Sisters of the Poor, Home for the Elderly in Enugu, Nigeria’. I personally know the nuns (Sister Sylvia and Mother Helen) who run the home. They rely on donations to care for the elderly, poor and often handicapped of every ethnic group and religion.
The home cares for fifty elderly and sick residents, ten of whom are blind because of untreated Glaucoma and others have symptoms of the same eye problem. The eye medication is expensive but also really alleviates the pain and the progression of the sickness. A further sixteen residents are handicapped and in wheel chairs due either to paraplegia or bad fractures.
As a result, the Nuns incur substantial costs in providing free medical care and yet they still manage to feed approximately 90 people (three times a day)! Unfortunately, the number of people coming to their gate asking for food is increasing. These are either displaced persons from the North or women and children who have had to leave their husbands. The state of many, especially the children, is often bad with the beginnings of Kwashiorkor and other diseases.
At the moment the Nuns are trying to arrange extra rooms, medical supplies and food to take in a few extra residents and this is what the money will be used for. They will be extremely grateful for any help you can give and assure you all of their blessings, as well as the prayers of their residents who count on the help of friends and benefactors for their survival.
The funds are needed this month. This charity means a lot to me as I know the Nuns who work in this home and know the money will be put to good use. I am covering 100% of my trip costs so every penny raised (less GoFundMe's deductions for using their service) will go to the Nuns.
I request you to share this plea and thank you for any donations, no matter how small, to help these Nuns in carrying out God’s work.
I am immensely grateful for all your support and promise to take you on this journey by sharing pictures from Kilimanjaro. Big Hugs. Ravi
That decision seems like yesterday! Time has flown by as our group of nine struggle to get ourselves in shape before the start on September 16th. While Killimanjaro is not a technical climb (more of a trek), it is still at 5,895 metres (19,341 ft) - the highest free standing structure in the world! With day time temperatures at Uhuru peak well below zero (last week it was -5 celcius), we will need to be well prepared and have been told to expect -20 to -30 Celsius in the early hours of the morning en route to the summit!!
Climbing Kilimanjaro will be a real challenge for me. I am racing against the clock to lose weight to take pressure off my knees.
In the final two weeks before we set off to Arusha, Tanzania on September 15th I am reaching out to all my family and friends to raise money for ‘The Little Sisters of the Poor, Home for the Elderly in Enugu, Nigeria’. I personally know the nuns (Sister Sylvia and Mother Helen) who run the home. They rely on donations to care for the elderly, poor and often handicapped of every ethnic group and religion.
The home cares for fifty elderly and sick residents, ten of whom are blind because of untreated Glaucoma and others have symptoms of the same eye problem. The eye medication is expensive but also really alleviates the pain and the progression of the sickness. A further sixteen residents are handicapped and in wheel chairs due either to paraplegia or bad fractures.
As a result, the Nuns incur substantial costs in providing free medical care and yet they still manage to feed approximately 90 people (three times a day)! Unfortunately, the number of people coming to their gate asking for food is increasing. These are either displaced persons from the North or women and children who have had to leave their husbands. The state of many, especially the children, is often bad with the beginnings of Kwashiorkor and other diseases.
At the moment the Nuns are trying to arrange extra rooms, medical supplies and food to take in a few extra residents and this is what the money will be used for. They will be extremely grateful for any help you can give and assure you all of their blessings, as well as the prayers of their residents who count on the help of friends and benefactors for their survival.
The funds are needed this month. This charity means a lot to me as I know the Nuns who work in this home and know the money will be put to good use. I am covering 100% of my trip costs so every penny raised (less GoFundMe's deductions for using their service) will go to the Nuns.
I request you to share this plea and thank you for any donations, no matter how small, to help these Nuns in carrying out God’s work.
I am immensely grateful for all your support and promise to take you on this journey by sharing pictures from Kilimanjaro. Big Hugs. Ravi
Organizer
Ravi Hemnani
Organizer
Key Biscayne, FL